Encultured Eating Course: Nine Weeks of Experience

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Table of Contents

Class 1
Class 2
Class 3
Class 4
Class 5
Class 6
Class 7
Class 8
Class 9

Class 1

This week we looked into the basic definitions of terms to be used in the course. I learnt that there was a relationship between the things one eats and ones culture. Therefore, in accordance to course objective one, food studies are directly related to other disciplines. In this reflection, I tried to tie my observations about food with other disciplines.

I took a look at my eight-year old nephew, who seemed to have an insatiable appetite. However, weight was not a problem regardless of his high consumption levels. I compared him to my 70-year old grandmother who never ate sugar, saturated fat or white starches because of her diabetes. These differences in food choices relate to the developmental stage of a person and their needs. Therefore, food studies are closely associated with developmental psychology.

When walking around my neighborhood, I found that we have Indian restaurants, Chinese restaurants and typical Canadian ones. All restaurant types serve different menu items, depending on the cultural group represented. Therefore, I realized that there was a relationship between anthropology or cultural studies and food studies.

I also went out for lunch with some of my friends and took the time to observe their eating patterns. One of them soaked his chips in ketchup while another one ate it dry. People associate certain foods to their past, and if it conjures up good memories, then they are likely to enjoy it. I deduced that psychology will play a large role in food studies as people have different mental reactions to food.

My interdisciplinary personality determines the foods I like, the cultural leanings of the restaurants I frequent as well as my developmental needs.

Class 2

In week 2 (coffee cup), we learnt about how the planet is cyclical, and that resource usage is finite. Concerns about wastage emanate from this understanding. Course objective 2 illuminates how major aspects of the food world connect and how food travels. My reflections this week focus on one aspect of the food cycle, which is the movement of food between the self and sewer or soil.

I once moved near an apartment whose bedroom window was directly opposite a restaurant. My side was at the back of the restaurant so I caught a glimpse of the goings on in those busy food joints. I was alarmed at the rate at which perfectly good food was thrown out. In fact, their bins were continuously full, such that trash collectors had to gather overflow on the sides of the containers. This made me wonder where all the wastage came from and why people were so wasteful. I looked through some blogs and found that we are a wasteful nation. In fact, the problem is endemic to North America. I found that over 30% of all food goes to waste in this part of the world, and decided to start tracing where these excesses came from.

It was not surprising that most people rarely finish their meals when they get to restaurants. This, I imagine, is intimately tied to the portion sizes we are given. Ever since the 1960s, portion sizes have increased at a disturbing rate; now people pay for what they do not need but still complain about their financial situations. Restaurants, such as the one opposite my building, contribute tremendously to this problem. Most of them make almost everything in the menu at once in order to ensure that customers are served soon after they order it. It would be less wasteful to make such items when ordered.

Higher portion sizes reflect an interdisciplinary combination of culture, psychology and agriculture in ones identity. Huge sizes psychologically induce buyers into restaurants. They are symptomatic of a cultural shift towards the exaggerated. They also indicate the availability of ingredients that emanate from the commercialization of agriculture production.

Class 3

Week 3 readings focused on Food Inc., or how the scale of production affects consumers. It was stated that centralization creates a greater distance between the producer and consumer. One of the course objectives talks about the complexity of food. Another objective talks about understanding the pathways of food. My reflections centered on the complex nature of food especially in light of industrial agriculture.

Canadians are increasingly more detached from their food. Few of them know where the fruits or vegetables they regularly consume are grown. They think that tomatoes can be found on trees and that sweet potatoes do not come from the ground. I asked a few friends why they had no interest in understanding the source of their food, and most of them did not see the need for this interest. Canadians need to trace the journey of the food they eat from cradle to grave. When they get interested in this part of their lives, then they better their chances of weeding out the noise, and get to the truth behind their meals. They will demand better safety standards and nutrition.

North Americans have a particularly hard time understanding this link because the food industry is a combination of numerous legislations, distribution networks and businesses. This big mess may be more than some people are willing to untangle. Therefore, the interdisciplinary nature of the food cycle within Canada encompasses political actors, and their legislations, businessmen, who distribute and sell the food, as well as farmers who produce it. It is this complex web of players that leads to the detachment of Canadians from the source of their food.

Class 4

Readings from week 4 about the industrial fast food complex got me thinking about the issue of labor in this sector. Every time I enter a fast food franchise, I am not just harming my body, but am also perpetuating the inequality that stems from this system. I got interested in aspects of labor because of interdisciplinary input from a business course. Entrepreneurs who created successful fast food companies all rely on the franchise structure, which allows them to maintain all the control in creation of a preset final product so that they can have a guaranteed rate of return. While there may be nothing wrong with high profits, it is the application or use of these returns that is disturbing. Most workers earn minimum wage in restaurant franchises, yet their CEOs take home seven-figure salaries. These amounts stem from corporate bonuses as well as conventional payments.

The fast food industry is notorious for having the highest number of minimum wage workers. I was shocked to find that only 10% of these workers get employee benefits. Even the so-called assistant managers are exploited by their employers.

They work for over 60 hours a week and have minimal options for promotion. Assistant managers get slightly more than the workers they supervise, even though they perform the duties of a store manager. Employee benefits in these fast food chains only account for 8.6% of these companies total expenses. Clearly, the chains are perpetuating an exploitative system that subjugates the very people who create their wealth. Not only do the poor working conditions frustrate employees, but they also explain why most products from the fast food chains are shoddy.

Class 5

This week, I thought about the rise of food television and the significance of this programming on Canadians food choices, as discussed in class. One course objective dwells on understanding the relationship between food studies and other disciplines, which is the point of emphasis in this entry.

TV cooking is a way of diffusing knowledge about ones culture. However, because a lot of decision makers exist between the person on the screen and the one in front of it, one may assume that a lot of that information is distorted. These networks contribute to social stratification and inequalities because some viewers simply cannot access the products that TV chefs use. My anthropological knowledge of cultural undertones in food TV prevents me from copying their food recipes blindly.

Food networks have created the phenomenon of the celebrity chef whose life is glamorous and enviable. Viewers are convinced that they can live a similar lifestyle if they simply buy the celebritys accouterments. It goes without passing that the main intention of selling cookbooks and endorsing products on these stations is to perpetuate the profits of the companies that make them. Most celebrity chefs will often mention the names of the products they are using and where to get them in ones area.

Celebrities are also personal brands, and it is for this reason that they write cookbooks and own their own restaurants. Certain cooking tools have a personality behind them, and a large percentage happen to be TV chefs. Food TV predominantly meets the economic objectives of chefs, manufacturers and TV executives. Because of knowledge about branding, I only use utensils that I need, not what celebrity chefs prescribe as their main motive is to make profit.

Class 6

After completing class 6 readings on the grocery store, I thought about food types and food practices in these stores. North America is inundated with processed foods; foods that are present in almost all grocery stores. A health-conscious individual would find it painstakingly difficult to stick to a non-processed diet. I tried to consume a strictly non processed diet for one week and found that it was a tall order. Not only did I have to plan my meals hours in advance, I also had to make time to visit those few locations that sell fresh and unprocessed produce. Farmers markets were my new haven; a luxury I was lucky to have.

While walking through the aisles of Atwater Market, I recognized that people in certain cities may not have ready access to such markets owing to the high number of grocery stores. Those that do have access may be too busy to get them; for instance, a single mother working two jobs may not have the time to do this continuously. The North American fast food culture has spoilt its citizens. Few businesses sell unprocessed food because they simply wont find a market for it. Choosing a healthy lifestyle is a tough choice because it takes a toll on ones resources as well as ones time.

The above reflections illustrate why I often buy food from groceries stores, and why the food is mainly processed. This advances course objective one, which states that students should identity relationships between food studies and other courses. The discipline of economics allows me to understand why grocery stores do not sell a lot of unprocessed foods; they must consider demand for it. Additionally, the discipline of agriculture illustrates why farmers markets are few and far between. Most are highly industrialized and commercialized, so they sell their produce to other intermediaries.

Class 7

This week, we learnt about kitchens and the power they exert over us. One course objective was to study the value and meaning of food in the domestic environment. My reflections this week center on the latter goal.

I wanted to know why the kitchen is so important in the home, so I thought about how I use the kitchen in my home. Most times, I usually invite my guests to the kitchen to chat with me as I cook. My friends and family members also do the same when it is their turn to cook. I think the kitchen is a gathering place that facilitates interactions in my home. Therefore, my interdisciplinary identity as derived from community behavior affects how and where I cook; that is in the kitchen.

As a child, I remember fond moments in my mums kitchen. We had a dining area in the kitchen, and would often join her even before dinner was ready. It was at this point that I learnt about table manners and certain cooking methods. I also found that we could talk about anything as my mum cooked. To me, this was a place where I could feel at home. It was time well spent with minimal regrets. My cultural and family knowledge influenced my choice to stay in the kitchen.

Sometimes guests in parties have entered our family kitchen and found comfort there. However, these are usually guests, with whom we are quite familiar. The tendency of such guests to gravitate towards the kitchen indicates that the kitchen has an informal aura that facilitates social interactions. My interdisciplinary knowledge about culture, community behavior and psychology affects where I eat because I know that it is permissible to use the kitchen for this purpose. Likewise, guests will also accept to use this location for their meals because they also have a similar interdisciplinary identity.

Class 8

This week, we learnt about recipes and what they represent to those who use them. My reflections in this journal entry are intended on advancing source objective 4, which talks about understanding the meaning of food in domestic spaces. I wanted to understand what a food recipe meant to me, and how this reflected on my complex interdisciplinary personality.

A perfect recipe should have the perfect ingredients. I have found that if one substitutes butter for margarine or uses dried coriander instead of raw leaves, then the flavor of the food could be ruined. My knowledge of nutritional sciences affects what I eat, and this testifies to my interdisciplinary personality.

Most of my meals rarely lack garlic and ginger because when growing up, my mum always insisted on them. I tend to gravitate towards recipes with these key ingredients because they elicit nostalgic feelings. I often find joy in recreating these memories. Therefore, my psychological interdisciplinary identity affects what and why I eat certain recipes.

I like recipes that deliver what they promise. Too often, one may find glossy photographs of foods that tempt someone into trying out the accompanying recipe. However, one may find that the steps were poorly described, and this can lead to disastrous effects. For instance, I once tried to make glazed donuts using an online recipe but found that my products were too sweet and soggy. The writer had not explicitly stated the amount of milk that one needed to use. His failures were an illustration of difficulties in language and expression. Therefore, language skills affect what one consumes, because I would have detected this weakness if I was more vigilant. This brings out the importance of disciplines such as language in food studies.

Class 9

This week, we discussed the concept of bartending and how it reflects upon a persons identity or culture. These revelations really surprised me because my experiences in bars have not been artistic in any way. As a result, I always make a point of refraining from cocktails as much as possible. Management of the bars I attend is problematic, so this has affected my choice of alcoholic drinks. Therefore, management as a field plays a large role in the things one consumes.

I had a friend who once owned a bar, and his cocktails were the only ones I could drink. I think I trusted him because he mixed his drinks with love. Most bartenders have adopted a conveyer belt mentality to the art of mixology. I often see many of them using short cuts and other questionable tactics to make cocktails. If bar owners were responsible for this task, then chances are that the drink would be acceptable.

My interdisciplinary personality is enriched by knowledge of managerial practices in bars. Consequently, I cannot try out cocktails drinks from anyone unless I am certain that they are the real owners of the bar, and they are good at what they do.

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